Homemade Lentil Tofu

Instructions

• 1
  Meanwhile, prepare the tartar sauce: Finely chop the pickles and fresh dill. Peel and finely chop the onion as well. Place all the chopped ingredients in a medium-sized bowl, mix with Greek yogurt, white wine vinegar, and Dijon mustard, and season with salt and pepper. Place the finished tartar sauce in the refrigerator to rest until you prepare the tofu and mashed potatoes (but at least for 10 minutes).
• 2
  After 2 hours of chilling the tofu, start preparing the mashed potatoes: Peel and cut the potatoes into smaller pieces, transfer them to a larger pot, cover with enough water, salt, and bring to a boil. Meanwhile, remove the tofu from the refrigerator and cut it into cubes about 2 cm × 2 cm in size (or into pieces of any other shape). Once the water with the potatoes starts boiling, reduce the heat to medium and cook the potatoes for 15⁠–⁠18 minutes until they soften.
• 3
  While the potatoes are cooking, fry the cut tofu: Heat 2 tablespoons of oil in a larger pan, add the tofu, and fry it for 12⁠–⁠15 minutes over medium heat.
• 4
  Once the potatoes are cooked, drain them, add butter to the pot, and start whipping the contents of the pot with an electric mixer on medium speed. During whipping, gradually add milk to the pot until the mash has a smooth consistency. Season the finished mash with salt.
• 5
  Divide the fried tofu into 4 portions and serve with mashed potatoes and chilled tartar sauce.
• 6
  First, start preparing the lentil tofu: Place the red lentils in a mixing bowl and bring 500 ml of water to a boil in a kettle. Pour the boiling water over the lentils in the bowl and let them sit for 15⁠–⁠20 minutes. Then blend the lentils until smooth, transfer the resulting mixture to a medium-sized pot, bring to a boil, and cook for 4⁠–⁠5 minutes over medium heat, stirring constantly, until the mixture thickens. At this stage of tofu preparation, you can add dried herbs or spices to the mixture ⁠–⁠ such as basil, oregano, thyme, ground paprika, ground chili, and many others. Then season the contents of the pot with salt, transfer to any smaller rectangular mold, and let it set for 1 hour on the kitchen counter. After this time, place the mold in the refrigerator and let it rest for another 2 hours.